The cost of Britons’ failure to learn foreign languages

Ultima modifica: 4 Dic 2017

Native English speakers can’t simply rely on the rest of the world’s desire to learn their language, say Gabrielle Hogan-Brun and Jennifer Jenkins, while Jane Sjögren quotes Nelson Mandela on the importance of linguistic skills and Trevor Stevens says learning a foreign language should be compulsory at General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE)

The UK is not only “mired in the relegation zone of European linguistic proficiency” (Editorial, 4 November); there is also an enormous cost to British businesses from reliance on English. Government figures show that the UK economy loses about £50bn a year in failed contracts because of a lack of language skills in the workforce.